Max Cigarettes - Twin tower toppling ad - 2004 print, Israel.

Beyond the offensive visual, there was some sort of "idea" in this ad.

This ad for Max Cigarettes, a Dutch brand in Israel, aimed to capture market share from the US-made L&M brand.

The founder of the agency, Eilon Zarmon, owner of Zarmon-Goldman, stated that they were not afraid to use provocative images, and that there were "almost no sacred cows" in their approach.

The ad's caption translates to "The Dutch one that shocked the Americans and took them out of L&M", with the word "shock" pronounced in a way that sounds like L&M.

Oy vey, what a terrible pun.

Ad agency: Zarmon-Goldman
Client: Max